Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather and My 2011 Boxing Wish List

2010 so far has been a good year for boxing. There are key fights that the fans craved for that actually happened. There was also startling news about Edwin Valero’s tragic death and the ongoing talks about the Mayweather-Pacquiao fight, in which we thought 2010 would be the culmination of it all.

Pacquiao remains the top pound-per-pound boxer, but the boxer of the year clearly belongs to Sergio Martinez with victories against Kelly Pavlik and Paul Williams.

As the year is slowly coming to an end, 2011 seems to be a promising year for boxing with future fights with the likes of a Nonito Donaire-Fernando Montiel fight and Manny Pacquiao against the aging veteran Shane Mosley.

10. Hopkins Career

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At age 45, The “Executioner” found the fountain of youth and continues to box beautifully.

It was always a constant call for him to retire, but he continues to defy expectations. He fought Roy Jones Jr. to a unanimous win and salvages a draw against the younger Jean Pascal in spite of suffering knockdowns in Rounds 1 and 3. I wish Hopkins would still continue dominating this year until he approaches the golden age of 50. That would certainly be a feat.

9. The Heavyweights

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Boxing belongs to the lower weights now with Manny Pacquiao, Floyd Mayweather Jr. and Sergio Martinez.

Long gone are the days when the heavyweights ruled the sport with Ali, Joe Frazier, Lennox Lewis and Mike Tyson. They were the last of their kind with the heavyweights becoming an undercard now with lackluster fights from the giants of the sport. I hope 2011 would be a better year for this division. David Haye is the only title holder who stood among the Klitschko brothers who collected the WBC, IBF, WBO and the Ring belts.

It looks like it would take years to make this division exciting again.

8. Yuriorkis Gamboa vs. Juan Manuel Lopez Fight

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Gamboa survived his latest fight against Orlando Salido when he was down once in Round 8 and was deducted by two points in the final round.

It was an exciting fight with Gamboa returning the favor by downing Salido twice in the last round. We all thought his next fight would be a salivating matchup against his equally-talented counterpart Juan Manuel Lopez who was very impressive on his last fight against Rafael Marquez. However, Gamboa was not even considered to be Lopez’s next opponent. Juanma will be fighting Teon Kennedy this April in Puerto Rico instead. This is what we call marketing. But I hope after the Kennedy fight, a November match up with Gamboa would be a mouth watering event.

7. Unified Champion

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This has been my long time wish for boxing to have one champion in each division. No sanctioning fees, no ABC titles, no interim, just one pure champion. In that case, it would be much easier to identify the true champion. Ok I’ll bet my house if you could name impromptu the IBF cruiser weight champion? Or the WBU bantamweight champion?

The good thing about having a unified champion is that Champions on each division would be forced to fight their contenders, and the best would always be the best.

6. Manny Pacquiao vs. Juan Manuel Marquez Fight

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Manny is picking Shane Mosley for his next fight.

However, Juanma is still going after Manny. If I were Manny, I would give Marquez the fight that he wants at 145. It’s a totally different Manny this time after their 2004 bout. We all know how the script goes, but Marquez can still be a good matchup whatever the ending is.

5. Sergio Martinez vs. Felix Sturm Fight

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Sturm’s WBA title and Martinez’s WBC and WBO titles for a unification bout.

Sturm has bounced back beautifully after his first TKO loss against Javier Castillejo. Winning nine out of his 10 fights with one fight declared as a draw. He deserves a fight with Martinez however. With both fighters having an upcoming scheduled fight early next year, this matchup could very well happen late in 2011.

4. Amir Khan vs. Timothy Bradley Fight

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It is already known that Khan’s glassy jaw is a thing in the past.

He took the heavy banger Carlos Maidana’s best shot and still came out standing. However, a fight with Timothy Bradley would be a good matchup for Khan with both undefeated fighters identically using the same strengths in speed and footwork. However, everything depends on Bradley’s next fight against fellow undefeated fighter Devon Alexander.

3. David Haye vs. the Klitschko Brothers

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I don’t know how many tricks Haye has in his pockets, but he has to let them all out if he would be facing one of the Klitschko brothers. If Haye wins, it would be a great wake up call for the heavyweight division.

2. Miguel Cotto vs. Antonio Margarito Rematch

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Margarito scored a TKO win against Miguel Cotto and broke Miguel’s winning record and invincibility.

It was rather a controversial win with the emergence of the hand wrap controversy. Without Margarito’s magic hands, he seemed ordinary. Losing to Mosley and Pacquiao, he then fought a lackluster fight against Roberto Garcia. A rematch with Cotto would be a great boxing match for diehard fans like us. Cotto has a score to settle, and Margarito has a statement to tell.

1. Manny Pacquiao vs. Floyd Mayweather Jr. Fight

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I know this fight is becoming a farfetched and a hopeless case, but that’s how I included this one on my wish list. “Never say never”…anything can still happen. This is the fight we have all been waiting for, and hopefully 2011 would be the year that this fight happens. Fingers crossed…